Mets hurlers just can't get a hit

NE News ConsortiumDillon Gee and the rest of the Mets starting pitchers have been frustrated by their inability to hit.

LOS ANGELES — The bases were loaded when Mets starter Dillon Gee stepped to the plate, bat in hand and modest goal in mind. A few moments before, Chip Hale had left his post at third base. He wrapped an arm around Gee and told him to just hit a fly ball.

This was the fifth inning on Saturday afternoon. The Mets and Yankees were still scoreless. There was one out. Inside the dugout, hitting coach Dave Hudgens muttered to anyone who would listen that Gee could not hit a ball on the ground.

With the count 2-2 against Bartolo Colon, disaster struck. Gee clipped a grounder down the third-base line. Alex Rodriguez stepped on the bag. His throw to first was easy, a rally-killer that left Gee conceding that capitulation here was better than competition. “It probably would have been better if I just took three strikes and walked off,” Gee said.

The next morning, Hale admitted that philosophy might have some merit.

“We’ve thought about, with the bases loaded and less than two outs, even telling pitchers to not even swing,” Hale said. “But in the National League, we need them to be part of the offense.”

There is a reason for his fatalism. At the plate, these Mets pitchers are a hapless bunch.
Entering tonight’s game against the Dodgers, as a group they rank last in the National League in batting average, last in on-base percentage and second-to-last in slugging percent.

Before R.A. Dickey slapped a single on Sunday, his teammates were in the midst of an epic 1-for-79 slump (.013).

This past month, manager Terry Collins decided to act. Extra sessions of batting practice were ordered. When they hit, Hudgens encourages them to use short swings. When they bunt, Hale cautions them about pitch selection and not stabbing at every cutter or slider that breaks their way.

Yet the results have not appeared. Consider this. In his April debut, Chris Young recorded three hits. He did not collect another this season. Four months later, he is still tied with Jon Niese for the team lead.

A variety of factors conspire against starting pitchers when they attempt to hit. Hitting, for one, is hard. It becomes more difficult when you see live pitching once every five days.

Though the Mets upped the pregame work, they cannot make it too intense. They worry about injuring an arm or core muscles. The morning after Gee’s folly, Jon Niese lounged in his clubhouse chair, talking about hitting. Pelfrey overheard the conversation.

The bunting struggles gnaw at Pelfrey. They also confuse him. As a staff, when they see a pitcher squaring up to bunt, they fire a fastball down the pipe and take the out. Yet when he or his teammates try to bunt, they see a vicious mix of pitches, anything to offset their rhythm.

“I don’t think it’s like this conspiracy against the Mets pitchers, or anything,” Chris Capuano said. “It certainly feels like we haven’t faced ourselves out because we’re chasing bad balls early in the count.”

When results come, this group cherishes them. On Sunday, Dickey guided a groundball back up the middle for a single. After the game, Niese congratulated him. Pelfrey sported a grin.

“One for our last one,” Pelfrey said. “Now if we go hitless in our next 79 ABs?”